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Canvas tool accessibility cautions and best practices.
Tips and resources for collaboration and use of Google Docs with a screen reader.

Most Canvas tools are accessible for students using assistive technology. However, some are more of a challenge to use than others.

Ensuring an accessible and pleasant experience to all users, regardless of disability, is a key focus of Canvas. The Canvas platform was built using the most modern HTML and CSS technologies, and is committed to W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative and Section 508 guidelines.

Visit Instructure’s Accessibility within Canvas Community page for more information.

Calendar

The calendar grid view is not screen reader accessible. Fortunately, The same information is available in the Agenda view and is accessible to screen reader users. Students can switch to the agenda view by clicking the Agenda button in the navigation bar.

Collaboration

Google Docs is the default Canvas collaboration tool. Factors such as the document, browser, screen reader and their interaction can make access, navigation and editing of a Google Doc a frustrating experience for screen reader users. Access to the content may be simplified by exporting it as a Word, OpenOffice, RTF, PDF, or HTML file.

Exporting a Google Doc

Press SHIFT+ALT+F to access the Google Docs File menu.
Press the letter D to open the "Download As" submenu.
Select the desired file type and press ENTER.

Here are some Google Docs resources that you and your students may find helpful.

Even with shortcut keys and other Google Docs accessibility features, real-time collaboration may still pose barriers for students with a variety of disabilities. Be flexible and avoid requiring the use of collaboration tools to complete assignments.

Grades

Canvas DocViewer is a tool that allows annotations on online assignment submissions in Canvas. However, those annotations are not screen reader accessible and the same information should be provided in the comments field of the sidebar.

The "What If" feature within the Grades tool allows students to explore how hypothetical scores on assignments and quizzes will affect their overall grade. Students who rely on keyboard-only navigation may be unable to take advantage of this feature. So, be prepared to discuss options and strategies for an optimal outcome with individual students.

Additional Canvas Tools

The following Canvas tools are accessible and support accessible content creation. See the Rich Content Editor section of this tutorial for information on creating accessible content.

Best Practice	Announcements	Assignments	Discussions	Files	Pages	Syllabus
Use clear and concise language.	✓	✓	✓		✓	✓
Use headings to organize content.	✓	✓			✓	✓
Include alternative text for images.	✓	✓	✓		✓	✓
Avoid the use of non-essential/decorative images.	✓	✓			✓	✓
Do not use color alone to convey information.	✓	✓	✓		✓	✓
Ensure documents include accessibility markup (headings, alternative text for images, lists, etc.).	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Include a transcript for audio content.	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Ensure media is captioned	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Ensure linked Web content and applications are accessible.	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Additional Considerations		Assignments will automatically show up in the Grades, Calendar, and Syllabus features — review these entries to ensure accessibility has been maintained.	Simplify the structure of Canvas Discussions by turning off threaded replies.	Material scanned and saved as an image-only PDF or other image-based file format is not accessible.

Quick Check

1. Most Canvas tools are accessible for students using assistive technology.

True

Correct.

False

Incorrect; try again!

2. Which calendar view is accessible to screen reader users?

Grid View

Incorrect; try again!

Agenda View

Correct.

3. Screen reader users may choose to simplify access to the content of Google Docs by exporting them to which file format?

MS Word

Incorrect; try again!

Open Office

Incorrect; try again!

RTF

Incorrect; try again!

PDF

Incorrect; try again!

HTML

Incorrect; try again!

All of the Above

Correct.

4. Annotations on assignments submissions using the Canvas DocViewer are screen reader accessible.

True

Incorrect; try again!

False

Correct.

5. The “What If” feature within the Grades tool is not accessible to users of which adaptive technologies/techniques?

Screen magnification

Incorrect; try again!

Keyboard-only navigation

Incorrect; try again!

Screen reader

Incorrect; try again!

Speech recognition

Answer reply text

Two of these

Correct; Screen reader and Keyboard-only Naigation

6. Which of the following Canvas tools are accessible?

Announcements

Incorrect; try again!

Assignments

Incorrect; try again!

Discussions

Incorrect; try again!

Files

Incorrect; try again!

Pages

Incorrect; try again!

Syllabus

Incorrect; try again!

All the Above

Correct.